Unexpected Suprises
by baby-kitsune9
Summary: It started with insomnia. Then the longing started. Leatherhead had never noticed before how cheated and empty his life felt until the dreams of an unknown human female started. And a romantic interest took root in the farthest depths of his mind. But is the female real? Or is he just losing his mind? LH/OC R&R please.
1. Chapter 1

Okay forgive me for this but I just had to try and write a Leatherhead fic.

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Ah, he was having that strange dream again.

The one where he had a human female pinned underneath him.

_Her breath coming out in soft short bursts as he ran his clawed hands carefully, gently along soft ivory flesh. Making the female whimper and arch her back- trying to press herself closer to him as golden yellow eyes studied her flushed face. _

_She was perfect! Truly, truly perfect. _

_It wasn't so much her appearance that drew him to her. Nor was it really her personality, though he knew her to be a kind if not awkward individual. No, It was her receptiveness and lack of fear that intriqued him. Drew him in like a moth to a flame and held him mesmerized. That and the fact that she let him close enough to touch her and more. _

_He had never thought he would find such a person among the humans. In fact, in the beginning- he had hated them. But there was just something about this female that tugged at his heartstrings, making it impossible for him to simply leave her alone._

_Leaning down over her, he scraped the teeth along his upper jaw along her skin. _

_Leaving little red markings in their wake before letting his tongue snake out and lick the markings causing the female to writhe and cry out as her body started to tremble. Letting go of her delicately boned hands, he placed one of his own next to her shoulder and closed the distance between their faces until his snout was a mere hairsbreath from her face and let his tongue snake out again to flick along her lips coaxingly. _

_He dared not try to kiss her any other way, he might accidentally harm her with his teeth. She whimpered again and lifted her hands to grip his torn lab coat as she let her small pink tongue come out of her mouth to touch his own. Earning a low growl from him._

_Her jade green eyes glazed as he pressed himself a little more against her causing her to gasp in shock as she felt his aching length against her bare stomach. "A-Ah!" She cried out as he settled himself between her legs a little more and leaned in again, this time to rub his skin against her own and take in her scent. _

_She bit her lower lip and buried her face against his shoulder- her breathing more erratic than before. The sound teasing his senses almost as much as her scent. He let out a low growl that changed to a purr as he said in a guttural voice that was just a hint breathless. "I need..." He couldn't say what he needed, his mind became far too hazy after that. _

_All he knew was one moment he was trying to speak to her and the next he was inside of her. His clawed hands gripping her hips and what was left of her torn panties. His length gliding in and out of her almost violently forcing little cries and hoarse screams from her throat as he mated with her. Soft growls of approval escaping him with each thrust inside of her. _

_He felt her body clenching around him and shuddered in ecstacy knowing that she was getting close. He shifted his hold on her, dragging her closer then slipping his arms around her body and picking her up as she gripped his shoulders, her small oval nails digging into his thick scaly skin. _

_She kissed the side of his neck as he slowed his pace a bit due to her position. After all, the last thing he wanted was to damage her organs while mating. Holding her, he carefully lifted her then lowered her back down his length, feeling the juices from her body running down his shaft. Continuing his minstrations with one arm, he shifted his other hand to tangle in her thick black tresses and pulled her head back so that he could lightly bite her shoulder causing her to cry out. _

_The effect of his teeth pressing into her skin was instant. His female made a loud keening sound as she came, her body shaking violently in his grasp as he let out a roar and soon followed her in bliss. Spraying his seed inside of her before letting himself sink down to the floor with her still in his grasp, their bodies still joined as he licked her shoulder and purred loudly in her ear. _

_"Are you alright?" He asked in a shakey tone as he combed his fingers through her dark sweat damp hair as he loosened his grip on her a bit so that he could see her face and let his tail twitch a bit when he realized that his mate had fainted on him...again. _

_Making a sound that was half sigh, half chuckle, he nuzzled her shoulder and throat, then lifted her so that their bodies seperated and laid her on her bed and watched her curl up on her side with a contented smile curving her lips- _

That was when he fell off of his couch with a barely suppressed yelp, thus ending his strange but pleasant dream.


	2. Chapter 2

Leatherhead splashed some water from the sink that his friend, Donatello had installed in his lair, on his face and wished that he had a mirror of some sort so that he may take in his appearance.

He felt that there was just something off about him. He felt tired. More so than usual. Perhaps because of the dreams he had started having since the middle of June or July- Funny that he couldn't recall when the dreams had started.

Just that they had started around the time he had been thinking of how lonely he was. After all, despite his sometimes uneven temperment, he was a _male_. And a damn good one too.

His height and bulk would be an asset to any female he chose as a mate. And with his intellect and protective personality to drive him, his mate would remain safe and sound and under his care until they both died of old age. Ah, but there lay part of the problem.

He could never mate while on Earth.

Humans were far too fragile and delicate to handle his passions without perishing during coupling. Not only that but here he was simply considered a mindless monster. Something to be hunted then destroyed.

And he _hated_ that fact.

Hated knowing that whenever he tried to reach out to someone they would run from him screaming in terror. Hated knowing that he would never go home or have children. He splashed a little more water on his face while attempting to squelch the feelings of disappointment and anger churrning in his gut.

He had been cheated out of everything... It saddened him really, though he hid it quite well.

Reaching out he turned off the tap and then straightened his spine and closed his eyes for a moment and tried to focus on the projects he had to get done today.

He opened his eyes and was about to get started when his nose picked up a strange scent coming from his skin. The scent was distinct, and smelled of Chai spice with a touch of honey to it. It smelled like the sweetest of delicacies. It smelled like, like..._her_.

The addmission was both startling and a little bit frightening to him since he couldn't recall _who_ exactly she was. Nor how her scent came to be on his skin. But it was there. Mixed with the smell of sweat, musk and sex. All of which mixed with his own scent causing him to go into a panic.

_Oh dear god_- How had another scent gotten on him? And why did he smell sex?

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She lay in her bed staring off into space, the alarm clock next to her bed blaring Paula Abdul's, Cold Hearted Snake.

The lyrics piercing through the semi thick fog of her mind as she tried to recall how she had met her special night time visitor. It had been between the months of June and July, hadn't it? Back when she had been staying at the beach house and caught a glimpse of something between seven- nine feet if you included the long tail- splashing around in the waters just off the dock where she had been standing.

She recalled seeing the figure moving back and forth through the waters, slicing through the small waves like a knife and pulling out her cell to take a picture. Her mind awhirl with questions and excitment. After all for all she knew the thing was a new speices of salt water fish. Never before descovered. But the second her cell's flash had gone off the creature's head jerked violently in her direction and angled it's body to ram the dock.

Her jade green eyes met and held with narrowed, angry looking golden yellow eyes and realized too late that she had caught the creatures attention. It's body rammed the rotting wood of the dock and with a startled shriek she suddenly found herself airborn mere moments before she hit the water and sank to avoid some of the planks of heavy wood raining down on her.

She didn't recall much after that. Only little snippets of memory.

Things like having her life flash before her eyes and cussing out one of her teachers when she had been in the third grade.

Then the fear hit her. She was alone in the water with something that was obviously intelligent enough to not want it's picture taken. But that didn't mean it intelligent enough to know that she couldn't swim.

She could recall her vision fading in and out a few times. She could recall seeing the creature circling over her head lazily. Could recall the shape and outline of it's body. The long legs and arms, the claw tipped hands, the long snout attached to it's head. The emerald colored scales that ran along it's snout and back, and the paler almost mint colored ones running down his lower jaw, neck and stomach.

Then she recalled seeing those yellow gold eyes of it's up close as her body came to rest on the bottom. She could make out it's snout much closer now along with all the razor sharp teeth. It stared at her for what seemed like a moment or two, daring her to do something.

So she had, as stupid as it was- she had reached out and very gently ran her fingertips along it's- No wait, that was wrong. It was a _he._ Not an it, thing, or creature- a _he_- and as she ran her fingers along his snout she hadn't been able to suppress her smile of awe.

Even in the dark, murky depths, he was beautiful.

She saw his eyes widen in suprise then a second later everything went black. A few moments after that she came to coughing up water while someone carried her out of the water and wheezed, "D-Did you s-see him?" To the person carrying her. Not realizing at that moment that it was the creature.

She heard a soft almost growling voice ask in a disgruntled tone, "See who?" And for a second felt her heart stop beating in her chest as she felt an overwhelming sense of sorrow.

"No one. Never mind." She said as she lay her head against the shoulder of the one who carried her and closed her eyes. Suddenly feeling very tired. When next she opened her eyes she was laying on the porch swing of her beach house with an overly large white- lab coat?- draped over her.

Pushing her wet hair back from her face and rubbed her eyes before she noticed the large four toed foot prints on the wood leading up to the swing then back down again and thought, _Holy shit! _

She suddenly felt lucky to be alive.

Ever since that night however, she had been visited by the creature every night. First he had wanted to retrieve his coat and check on her to make sure that her close brush with the grim reaper had left no adverse affects on her. The second time he had visited her was when she had fallen asleep on the beach after a few hours of star gazing.

She remembered a large hand gently shaking her for a moment or so, then as the night went on and the temperature dropped- she had awoken covered once again by the overly large lab coat with a small fire several feet away and the creature had been sitting there on the other side of the flames. Just staring at her with those unblinking eerie golden yellow eyes of his.

"You're still here-" She said almost weakly as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes and looked around as if she were puzzled about where she was and how she had gotten there.

"I couldn't just leave you in such a defensless state-" He replied absently, watching her expression for any traces of fear. After all who in their right mind wouldn't be afriad to be near a two ton seven foot (nine feet if you count the tail) alien crocodile. "Especially when you were being so difficult to wake."

She made a humming sound and muttered an apology, completely dismissing the fact that he was a talking crocodile. Probably giving him the impression that she had no common sense at all. But honestly she was impressed that he could speak. She merely thought it rude to point that fact out, that's all. Pushing herself upright, she looked down at the coat as it slipped from around her shoulders to pool around her waist and said, "I took you're jacket again..."

"You looked like you needed it. You were shivering rather violently."

"Oh, sorry-" She said as she carefully folded his lab coat and held it out to him. Nudging a well defined bicep with the hand holding his coat. Slowly, and cautiously, he reached out and took the coat from her and glanced back at her and noted that she was cold again.

Making a low growling sound in the back of his throat he grasped her wrist his hand as she started to pull it back, and dragged her over to where he was and then lifted her up and placed her in his lap and curled his tail around her waist and slipped his coat on and pulled the corners forward until she was covered by the fabric too. "Um..." She started to say in a nervous tone before he shushed her by pointing to the sky and saying in a slightly demanding tone.

"Quiet. I want you to watch the stars with me."

After that she had fallen into an awkward sort of silence, broken only by her companion when he pointed out a cluster of stars and told her it's name. It had occurred to her then that he may be seeking her out of loneliness or companionship.

And she hadn't had the heart to send him away.


	3. Chapter 3

Leatherhead bathed and tried to dismiss the scents he'd discovered as mere...well, he had been alone for a long time so maybe he'd been taking care of himself in his sleep. He didn't know but he damn well wasn't going to dwell on it any further. He had work to do today. Then once it was done maybe, just maybe he could go and visit his friends the turtles.

God knew it had been almost a month since he had seen them. For all he knew the lair was in shambles and they were dead. So it never hurt to check. Especially when Michelangelo was running lose.

The youngest turtle tended to court trouble more than his tempermental brother Raphael.

Sitting at the special desk that his turtle friends had put together for him due to his size, Leatherhead typed away at the hand me down computer that the turtle's human friend April O'Neil had gotten for him and paused when he noted his fingers. Leaning back a little bit he held one hand up and studied it for a moment.

Focusing on it's size of his palm and the length of his fingers.

His palm was roughly the size of an adult male human skull, his finger were long and nimble. His friend Donatello had told him once that he envied him for having such hands. That they were extraodinary.

Staring at them now, Leatherhead wondered if his friend had been joking with him. There was nothing extraordinary about them. They were just plain ordinary- A sudden voice filled his mind. Startling him so badly that he jumped up out of his chair so quickly that he knocked it over in his haste. _You have such nice hands... Graceful, ya know. _

Shaking his head, he reached down and started to pick up his chair when he heard the voice again. This time accompanied by a face. A face that looked so familiar to him yet at the same time not.

A heart shaped face. Thick beautiful mid back length hair that hung over one slender shoulder in a braid. Flawless ivory skin. Pale rose pink lips. And wide jade green eyes fringed by sooty lashes.

Dropping the chair, he lifted his hands to rub at his eyes and let out an small irritated growl. _What the fuck was this? _He wondered as he counted to ten then dropped his hands back to his sides, hoping that whatever it was that was pleaguing him would finally leave him be. Sadly that wasn't the case. The second he reached for his chair to pick it up again, another image of the unknown female danced through his head causing him to go very still.

Honestly at this point if he had had fur he would have bristled.

This time the female was laying asleep on what looked like diamond dust colored sand. Her features were so lovely and vulnerable that his heart sped up in his chest. Growling he dropped his chair again and gave up the fight for the moment since he was too distracted to work then perhaps he should pay his turtle friends an early visit.

Who knew maybe talking to Donatello or Splinter may help him control his straying mind.

Sighing heavily he saved what he had been working on so far, then turned off his computer and with an irritated sweep of his tail grabbed his lab coat and headed for the enterance to the sewers.

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Hanna Morgan sat on her porch, her easel and latest painting discarded a few feet away along with all her other supplies. For some reason she didn't understand she just didn't feel like working today. She just wanted to watch the waves beat against the beach. Her green eyes scanning the waters subconciously for some sign of Leatherhead's form.

Wondering if he was out swimming again or if he was doing some of the projects he mentioned to her. Snorting at her uncharacteristic display of melancholy she looked away from the ocean for a moment and thought, _He's probably working on his projects_.

Which meant that he was too busy to come see her.

Not that he would in broad daylight anyways, it just wasn't smart. Even she was aware of the danger to him during this early hour when there was no darkness or shadow to hide him. She supposed that she was simply looking for him because she missed his company. Sighing and feeling a little bit like an abandoned puppy waiting for it's owner to come home and pick it up, she almost missed the sound of her phone ringing in the house.

"Damn." She muttered darkly as she got up and tried to make her way to the front door, managing to trip herself and fall only once before scrambling inside to answer it before it stopped ringing.

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Leatherhead entered the turtle's lair with a sense of hesitation thinking that perhaps his friends were busy and he should have called first when Donatello came out of the kitchen holding a coffee mug and noticed him about to turn back around and leave, and called out happily.

"Leatherhead!"

The crocodile glanced at him over one of his shoulders and sighed softly. Too softly for the turtle to hear as he plastered on a smile and turned back around to greet his friend as his brothers all came out of hiding.

"LH, what's up?"

"Hey. Long time no see."

"How ya been man?" Each of the three greeted him as they all made their way to the base of the stairs and waited like they always did when he visited. He supposed that they did it as a percaution just in case he lost his temper. Not that it mattered to him much, he understood enough about them to know that they weren't trying to hurt his feelings or insult him.

It was simply how they were. Besides, he couldn't help but feel more relaxed and lighthearted now that he could see them. He had never realized how much he had missed their presence this past month. "Hello my friends, I hope that you will forgive my sudden visit-" He said as he walked down the stairs and shook each of their hands.

"It's no problem Leatherhead. You know that you're always welcome." Leonardo, the eldest of the turtles said kindly as he studied the crocodile. Leatherhead looked a little off to him, but he was uncertain of why. Glancing over at Donatello, he noticed that his younger brother was studying their friend as well over the rim of his coffee cup.

Mikey latched onto the alien with his usual hyper enthusiasm and started firing off questions so fast that Leatherhead couldn't keep up with them even as he patted the young turtle's shell and looked at the others with a sort of, _Help me_, look on his face. Forcing Leonardo to step in and gently pry his little brother off of him and move him back some so that Leatherhead could breathe.

"Would you like to sit down and have some tea LH?" Leo asked, wanting to help the giant relax a bit more since he seemed to be troubled by something. Don reached out and put a hand on his arm and gave him a look that said that he'd take care of the crocodile. Quickly followed by a look that practically screamed, _Get lost_.

"Tea would be nice." Leatherhead said almost too quietly to hear, his normally powerful presence seemed to be be lacking his normal confidence at the moment as the four watched him fidget with one of his ripped coat sleeves.

"Alright LH, follow me." Don said, pretending not to notice his friend's strange behavior as the two of them headed towards the kitchen.


	4. Chapter 4

Leatherhead stared down at his untouched tea with a thoughtful expression on his face as Donatello cleared his throat and asked, "So what's on your mind LH?" Looking up from his cup, the crocodile glanced at his friend with a peculiar expression on his face before saying.

"I think I'm starting to lose my mind..." Donatello put his cup down on the table and gave him a worried frown before asking,

"What makes you think that you're losing your mind?"

Leatherhead opened his mouth to reply, then shut it and looked away before answering, "I have been hearing and seeing things that are not there..." _Like phantom females with jade green eyes. _He thought to himself before Donatello asked him if he had been resting normally. Leatherhead nodded his head, not wanting to admit that he had only slept every other day or so for the past few months.

Which probably contributed to his current tiredness.

Donatello stared at him for a second then opened his mouth and abruptly closed it again without saying anything as he averted his eyes and muttered under his breath. "Well, seeing and hearing what isn't there would make anyone think they were going mad."

"I'm sorry Donatello, I missed that. What were you saying?"

"Nothing." Don said a little too quickly for the crocodile's liking. Growling softly at the younger male he picked up his cup and downed his tea then snapped,

"Well thanks for nothing-" He started to get up to take his cup to the sink, startling Don with his snarky tone. "Since you don't want to hear me out then I'll just leave." Leatherhead said as he washed his tea cup and set it aside, not caring to look over his shoulder at Donatello at the moment since the turtle had hurt his feelings. After all he had come to his friend with a genuine problem and had felt he could talk to Don about it openly.

He hadn't expected the turtle to act like he was an idiot and mutter under his breath. The jerk.

"Wait, LH, I'm sorry. I was just thinking aloud-"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever-" The croc muttered as he made his way out of the kitchen and towards the door. Pausing only long enough to wave at Donatello's brothers before he left.

Leaving a group of four concerned turtles behind.

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Hanna was making a salad for lunch when she heard a car pull up to her house and paused at cutting the vegetables just long enough to look outside and see who it was before muttering an oath. _Damn_.

It was Mrs. Morrison, a local real estate agent whom had been harrassing her for the past few months in an effort to get her to sell her house. "And I thought my day couldn't get any worse." She groused as the woman walked up the porch steps and started to knock on the kitchen door.

Pissed that Mrs. Morrison didn't seem to understand that 'no' meant 'no'. Hanna opened the door and then stood there glaring at the woman all while wishing she could strangle her with her sky blue floral scarf.

"Mrs. Morrison." She said in a cold tone.

Mrs. Morrison gave Hanna a quick look over, taking in what she was wearing with a brief look of distaste, then plastered on her brightest, friendliest, _fake_ smile and said, "Oh Hanna, hello dear. How have you been? Well I hope."

Hanna narrowed her eyes at the woman's attempt at pleasantries and all but snarled, "Didn't I tell you the last time you were here that I'd have you arrested for trespassing the next time I saw you?"

Mrs. Morrison's smile faltered a bit before it kicked up a notch and she said cheerfully, "Oh pish dear. Even I know that was a ploy. After all holding out until the last moment can get you considerably more money from the buyer I have lined up for this place." Hanna growled at the woman, baring her teeth to show her hostility openly. Hoping that the woman would finally take the hint.

But Mrs. Morrison was stubborn and it didn't stop her from shoving her way inside Hanna's home without permission. Nor did it stop her from checking out what she had been fixing for lunch before inviting herself to join, then sit down at the island in the middle of Hanna's kitchen and set her large heavy looking leather bag on the tiled surface.

And started pulling papers out and talking while Hanna fantasized about killing her and putting bricks in the woman's bag then dumping her in the ocean. _And I'd do it in a flipping heartbeat if not for the fact that Leatherhead might hate me for it. _After all, the ocean was his place to splash around and she was fairly certain that having dead bodies polluting his water would be something that he may not appreciate.

She was so busy thinking of creative ways to get rid of the woman that she didn't hear her speaking until she said, "Hanna dear? Are you listening?" Snapping her out of her warped thoughts in time to slam her kitchen door shut and snap at the woman,

"Fuck no, I'm not listening." Why was it that everytime this woman opened her mouth she spouted off nonsense that put Hanna's teeth on edge?

"Well you should dear. The buyer has made a more than generous offer for the house and the land. Hell, she's even thrown in an extra thirty thousand on top of her fifty thousand dollar offer. That's more than enough to get a place closer to the city. You could get a nice condo and still have enough to live on for a while. Perhaps until you find yourself a nice man-"

"My grandparents paid well over a million for the house and the thirteen acres of beach that came with it. They lived and died here. My happiest memories of them are in this house. I'm not selling. That's final." Hanna said in a clipped tone as she glared at the woman. Mrs. Morrison sighed and shook her head at her.

"You know Hanna, the buyer I have lined up for this house isn't a very nice person. In fact she's been rumored to be a gang boss. You don't want to get in the way of someone who makes people disappear for a living. It's simply not wise."

Hanna gave her a dark look and took a threatening step towards the woman. Her instincts telling her that Mrs. Morrison had just threatened her in some capacity. And the part of her that she had locked away since she had been thirteen surfaced with a vengance.

Reaching over to the opposit counter she grasped the handle of the knife she'd been using a few minutes before and held it up and ran her fingers along the blade, checking the sharpness before saying, "You know Mrs. Morrison, when I was younger I ran with city gangs too. I even had one that is _still_ loyal to me even after all this time. All it would take is one phone call and you would vanish. You're kids would vanish. Hell, even the family pet would vanish..." Setting the knife down on the counter again she leaned down into the woman's personal space and hissed. "So the next time you want to come here and fucking threaten me, expect trouble. Now get your shit and get the hell out of my home."

Mrs. Morrison gulped and quickly grabbed all of her things and ran to the door, Hanna dogging her steps as she went. Grasping the doorknob in her hand the real estate agent turned and gave Hanna one last look, her slate grey eyes spitting venom as she said, "You'll pay for turning down the offer."

Hanna said nothing, she merely crossed her arms over her chest and continued to glare as the woman scampered out the door, slamming it behind her.


	5. Chapter 5

Shortly after Mrs. Morrison had left, Hanna had placed a call to one of her old gang mates. A guy called Eric Thomson- whom was a police officer, and asked him about several gangs in the city and told him about Mrs. Morrison and her threat. Eric hadn't been able to help her much since he was a homicide detective and had little to do with the street gangs now. But he had promised that he would e-mail her with anything he learned.

If he got his hands on it, that was.

After that the rest of Hanna's day was fairly boring. She ate her lunch a little later than she had meant too due to the fact that she'd been pissed. Did some painting, some cleaning and laundry then finally slipped on a pair of shoes and a thin jacket then headed for the door. She couldn't take just sitting around anymore.

She wanted to be sitting on the beach when Leatherhead came to see her.

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Leatherhead had been so upset upon arriving home that he had been unable to concentrate on anything. So after much deliberation with himself, decided to take a mild sedative and try to catch up on his rest. Grabbing the bottle that Donatello had given him to help with his insomnia, he shook out three pills- Just enough to put him out for a little while instead of all day and night- and popped the tablets in his mouth and swallowed then made his way over to his couch and lay down on it and made himself comfortable.

However instead of falling asleep like he had wanted, for some odd reason he seemed to remain wide awake.

His golden yellow eyes staring at the flurecent light hanging over his head until he felt as if he had burned his retina's. Finally after what seemed like forever, he closed his eyes then opened them again and looked at the small clock hanging across the room, on the wall over his computer. It was eight pm.

And some part of his mind registered that darkness had fallen on the world outside and his mate would be waiting for him to appear to her. Getting up, he rolled his shoulders and popped his back and a few other things to work out the kinks he'd gotten from laying on that damn uncomfortable couch, and headed towards the enterance of his lair and turned towards the tunnel that led out to the ocean.

Not realizing that he was being watched by four pairs of eyes.

He walked a good mile in a half before coming to the old drainage pipe that was partially submerged under water. Wading further and further in by the moment, he waited until the water was almost up to his shoulders before bending his knees just enough to go under the water before swimming out of the pipe and making his way east.

Towards the beach. His mind already consumed with curiosity.

How would his mate recieve him tonight? Would he find her cooking? Sleeping? Reading? Would he find her on the beach watching the stars again? His palms itched in anticipation of touching her as he swam closer and closer to his home away from home.

He got about thirty feet from the shore before surfacing slightly, his eyes scanning the shore line cautiously when he caught sight of the lone dark haired figure sitting on the beach staring off into space.

She was waiting for him! She was waiting for him! He thought in excitment as he surged forward, slowly letting his body emerge from the rolling waves as he looked over his mate.

She looked stressed. Perhaps upset about something. "What's wrong?" He asked as he slowly made his way to her side until he loomed over her. Hanna tipped her head back and looked up at him and smiled faintly.

"Nothing. I was just thinking of making a trip to the city in a week or so." She said as she slowly got to her feet and then dusted herself off as he frowned and mulled over her words.

"I don't think going to the city is wise..." _But then again she would be closer to me and my home if something should happen_. He thought. "There are far too many gangs running amuck."

"I'm not worried- I have a friend that works in one of the local police departments, so it isn't like I would be defenseless. He'd make sure that I had a taser and stuff to protect myself with." She said as he reached out and took one of her hands in his. Lacing their fingers together he then lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed her knuckles as she asked,

"Have you eaten yet today?" Leatherhead smiled and shook his head no. Causing her to give him a funny look before she tugged on his hand and the two of them started walking. "Then I'll just have to fix you some hamburgers or something, won't I?"

"That sounds lovely." He said happily as he let her drag him towards her home.

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Back at the old drainage pipe the turtles stared down the watery depths for a moment before exchanging a worried look. "Don, where does this come out at?" Leo asked.

Don stared at the deep murky waters and made a strained sound in the back of his throat, "The ocean, Leo. It leads out to the ocean."

"Are there any beaches nearby?" Raph asked curiously as Don looked at him and gave a jerky nod.

"About a mile or so out."

"Shit." Mikey said in a shakey tone as his older brothers fell silent.


	6. Chapter 6

The second they were inside her home, Leatherhead let go of Hanna's hand and made his way over to the small island counter where he pulled out a chair and sat down while subtly sniffing the air. Someone had been in his mate's home today.

He could smell the slightly overwhelming perfume even though it had faded considerably.

He could also make out the stench of fear and anger. Glancing at Hanna's back, he pretended to make himself comfortable as she pulled out three packets of frozen hamburger meat and set about thawing them while he stared a hole through her. Wondering if he should ask her again what had her so upset or if he should just leave it be and let her come to him when she was ready.

But her silence worried him, thus making him want to ask even more. But for now he decided to hold his tongue.

"How do you like yours?" She asked as she finally managed to thaw out one packet and started to unwrap it to get to the meat. He propped his head up in his hands and chuckled.

"Silly question. How else would a creature like me eat it's food?"

"Raw and bloody-" Hanna replied weakly causing him to grin and make an amusing humming sound.

"And usually kicking and screaming too. Don't forget about that." He said in a teasing tone and watched her make a face and blanch a little before saying,

"Ew. No after dinner snack for you bud." Leatherhead put on his most abashed expression and looked at his mate, hoping that she wouldn't with hold his after dinner snack from him. God knew he would be in a pissy mood for a while if she did. Hanna finished making one meat patty and set it in a frying pan then reached for some more meat before pausing to look at him over her shoulder.

She took in a minute to take in his expression before giggling. Causing Leatherhead to narrow his eyes and glare at her back before snapping in a gentle almost playful tone, "Cruel woman."

"Says the crocodile-man who just admitted to eating things that kick and scream." Hanna snarked back in a similar tone as he continued to pout before saying,

"Well, it was only once and I figured that since I had taken the guy's arm..."

"_Ew. Ew. Ew_. Please stop talking." Hanna whimpered as she set aside another meat patty and reached for some more hamburger meat as he grinned again.

"What?" He said as innocently as he could before continuing, "I figured that since he was being a baby about losing his arm then I'd simply give it back to him." His female made gagging noises and lifted one of her arms enough to partially cover her face.

Fearing that he may have gone too far with his teasing, Leatherhead got up off of the seat he'd been using and made his way around the island and over to her side and gently grasped her arm and pulled it away from her face and used his other hand to maneuver her over to the sink. Just in case she got ill on him. "Forgive me dearest, I didn't mean to take my joke so far-" He said as he rubbed her back soothingly.

He could see her internal struggle for a moment and wondered if she was going to ask him to leave, but like that first night under the water when her life had been gradually slipping away- She surprised him by giving him a wane smile before replying. "I know. And don't be sorry. You are _who_ you are, just like you are _what_ you are. Nothing changes that. And you shouldn't be made to feel embarrassed or ashamed for certain things... Understand."

Leatherhead's thin lips curved up at the corners as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his side and muttered, "I understand."

(*********************************************************************************************************************************************************)

Leatherhead's lair-

Don, Raph, Leo and Mikey were busy trying to find some clue as to their friends whereabouts. So far they were coming up with a whole lot of nothing. Which didn't make things any easier for them since they were starting to panic. After all, if Leatherhead was exposed- they all were.

Raph accidentally knocked over a bunch of colorful beakers while trying to get to some notes and made a low growling sound of irritation before snarling, "There's nothin here!"

"I wouldn't be so sure of that." Don said as he continued to check Leatherheads computer. He found it odd that his friend had several projects started, but none of them were anywhere close to being complete. Checking the dates on some of them, he noted that some were a little over a month old, and frowned. This wasn't like LH.

Usually he finished something he started in a few days, or even a week or two. But to drag some stuff out for a little over a month- meant that he wasn't concentrating on his work like he should. Which begged the question, What was distracting him?

Mikey stepped out of the hidden chamber where LH's bedroom was located- It was a nice vault like area with two queen size beds pushed together, a small mountain of pillows in vivid blues, and greens, and seafoam colors that matched the blankets on the bed. However it looked like Mikey hadn't come out of the room empty handed.

In his hands were what looked like sketch book papers. "Hey guys- Does LH have a girlfriend or something?" The youngest turtle asked as he thumbed through the sketches.

The three older turtles all stopped what they were doing and looked at each other then made their way over to Mikey. Leo was the first to reach Mikey and take the papers from him and glanced at them and felt a tremor of shock go through him.

The sketches were lovely.

Or at least they would have been if they hadn't been so damning.

Each picture was wonderfully detailed, showing a private moment between LH and a human female. Leo thumbed through the pics then handed them off to Don, who quickly went through them before realizing that he had seen something on LH's computer about human genetics and mutations.

And after he handed the pics to Raph went back to the computer to recheck things as Raph told Mikey to put all but one of the sketches away as Don pulled up a file on Leatherhead's computer and called them over to him. The three turtles reluctantly made their way over to Don as he opened the file and scanned various things that the croc had pulled from the internet.

One of which was about a rare genetic disorder called, myostatin-related muscle hypertrophy. A disorder where the person suffering from it had forty percent more strength than the average normal human being. "Holy shit..." Don muttered as he read the top part of the screen before scrolling down to an image that LH had taken from the net.

The image was of what appeared to be a thirteen year old young girl with a heart shaped face, dark wavey hair that was in a pixie cut hair style, wearing a jean jacket, black shirt with a grinning skull, dark pants and a pair of ankle boots with small three inch heels. And down below the picture was a name.

Hanna Morgan- Followed by the words, _The strongest kid in New York! _

And below that was a news paper article that read,

_Don't let this little lady's angelic face fool you, she can easily bench press a ten thousand pound truck! For a long time now Hanna has been living a double life. Trying to hide her rare talents from the world so that she wouldn't be judged harshly- and made to feel like a freak. Unfortunately, her efforts were in vain. _

_In August of last year while walking home from school, she was jumped by a gang of people only known as- The Foot. She beat them and walked away without a scratch only to find herself drafted into the middle of a gang war. The Foot clan offered her a place as one of their top generals- and were promptly turned down. A move that this super strong little gal came to regret when her parents were both murdered while she was out with friends a few weeks later..._


	7. Chapter 7

"Tell me something I don't know about your past-" Leatherhead said as he finished polishing off the plate of hamburgers Hanna set in front of him while he waited for her to finish cooking the next batch. "Like what you were like growing up."

Hanna made a humming sound as she flipped the burgers in the frying pan, cringing a bit when some grease caught her on the wrist. Leatherhead noticed the reaction to the grease and started to get up out of his seat again so that he could take over for her since he knew heat and soft human skin, just didn't mix. "You know if you want, I can do that for you." He offered, not wanting her to suffer anymore burns for his sake.

He liked her skin as it was. _Unmarred_.

And if taking over for her meant keeping it that way, well then- he was game. Hanna flipped the meat and jumped and made a hissing sound from between clenched teeth when she was burned by the grease again before replying, "Thanks but no. The meat would be too raw for either of us to eat it if you cooked-"

"I'm not that bad-" He said in a low growling tone, close to her ear as he took the spatula from her and gently pushed her aside so that he could stand in the spot she had been in. "Now tell me about what you were like growing up." Leatherhead said in a slightly impatient tone as Hanna made a huffing sound and stepped over his tail to get to the sink.

No doubt to run cold water over her grease burns. "What I was like growing up, huh... You couldn't ask something that I'd actually want to talk about could you?" Leatherhead gave her a peculiar look that spoke volumes to her. It was the same look her grandfather had used to give her when she was a little girl up to no good.

That, _you-will-tell-me-all-or-else-I'll-make-you_ look. Sighing in defeat Hanna turned the tap off and turned around to lean against the sink before saying, "Okay. What exactly do you want to know?"

"Have you ever had skeletons in your closet?"

"Fake ones or real ones?"

"Ha, ha, my love. But I want real answers not jokes."

"Sorry. Old habit. Alrighty then, skeletons- Yeah, I've got a few. Mostly from when I was a kid or teen. Everything past that has to do with the house, the beach, my work- Anything to avoid other people."

Leatherhead looked at her curiously before saying, "You mentioned a rare genetic disorder that you suffer from. I looked up some information on it. I know why you try to hide yourself away from others. I even managed to find news paper articles about what happened to your parents... I also know that you were more or less drafted into another gang and took it over. But I don't know anything after that."

"Ah, so now we get to the root of the conversation. Alright, when I was first drafted into the gang it was called Wild Stallions. I was the first female member of the group- so I was thought of as property until I could prove myself. But they were a group of people who beleived in might makes right. The strongest person in the group was the leader, no exceptions. So I took it over and became known as The Hurricane. I was young and angry about what had happened to my parents and I was looking for ways to spare others the same fate- I was with the gang for three years. Met a lot of interesting people who are still in touch with me. People that I feel privileged to call my friends."

"By the time I left the gang I was sixteen and I couldn't afford to keep things up. It was all taking a toll on me both physically and emotionally so I walked away. I buckled down at school to make up for lost time. I spent more time with my grandparents, which was good since they died when I was nineteen so I have three extra years of memories with them. The house was theirs. Their dream home. The place they lived in ever since it was built in the seveties- that's part of the reason I love this place so much."

"I used to spend my summers here when I was little. I played dress up with my grandmother's scarves and makeup. I used to wrangle my grandfather into tea parties..." Hanna sighed, a wistful expression on her face. "If I could I'd fill this house with children."

"What makes you think you can't?" Leatherhead asked curiously as he set the spatula down and turned to face her. His eyes unblinking as they studied her before he continued, "If you want a child, I can give you one. But breeding with someone like me- is dangerous to say the least. For reasons that are somewhat obvious."

Hanna looked at him wide eyed, her expression quesioning as he reached out and ran his fingers along the curve of one cheek. His expression tender before he said, "I leave the choice to you. There's no rush." Then dropped his hand and turned back to the burgers and picked up the spatula.

"Who would it take after the most? If I said yes that is." Leatherhead's spine went ramrod stiff and he very nearly dropped the spatula. He was just so shocked and surprised by her question. And yeah, maybe a little scandalized too.

"I'm not sure who has the more domonate genes but-"

"Would it be a little baby crocodile? I hear that they are adorable." Leatherhead flushed under his scales and reached out to turn off the stove then set the spatula down and muttered,

"Wicked woman." Softly under his breath before he picked her up and quickly headed for the livingroom since it was the most spacious room in the house and thus easier for him to maneuver in.


	8. Chapter 8

Hanna wrapped her arms around his neck and held on so tightly that her small nails bit into his scales as he used his tail to sweep aside the couch, a love seat, coffee table, and a few other things before he slammed her against the nearest wall. Forcing the air from her lungs temporarily as he used one hand to hold her body in place while using the other to tug and pull at her clothing until he had most of her body bared.

He could feel the pounding of her heart under his hand, his heart echoing the rhythm of hers as he heard her give a breathy giggle before asking, "Eager much?"

She had no idea.

He'd been ready for this since the beginning, he just hadn't expected her to want the same. So in a way- he had felt as if part of his hopes and dreams for a mate and family had died, though he had tried to convince himself that merely being with Hanna. Spending time with her. Joking with her. Hearing her laugh- was enough for him.

But the fact that his Hanna was willing to go through with this- to give him a child, even without knowing the risks to herself- It made him love her even more. He bent his head close to hers and licked her lips, slowly, lovingly as he made a soft growling sound in the back of his throat and murmmered, "Tell me what you want. Be detailed."

She gave him a heart stopping smile and he gulped, suddenly feeling nervous and in over his head as she said. "I want a baby, Leatherhead. Yours. I want us to be a family. For you to stay with me always and watch our baby grow-" He groaned. Oh god, that sounded wonderful. She made everything sound as perfect as he had always imagined.

His hands trembling, he lifted them to her face and framed it in his large hands and swallowed past the lump in his throat. "It's dangerous Hanna. Especially for you. What if I accidentally hurt you during impregnating you?" _Or worse- _His mind whispered. _What if he accidentally killed her? What would he do then? _"Or what if the child takes after me and is hidiously deformed? What if it kills you while you give birth to it? If that happened..."

"Are you trying to tell me that you would hate it? Maybe try to murder it?" Hanna asked seriously, her tone hard. He gave her a wide eyed look and quickly shook his head no.

No. That was definitely not what he was trying to say. What he was trying to say was that he wasn't sure he would be able to live without her if the worst should happen. After all, his speices mated for life. Once one mate died the other soon followed. That was simply how it was.

And if that happened then their child would be left alone. Possibly to suffer a long and agonizing death from sickness or starvation. "I could never hate something that is a part of you, Hanna. But I need you to be absolutely sure that this is what you want." Leatherhead finally said as he nuzzled the left side of her face.

Hanna seemed to relax upon hearing his reassuring words and reached up to grasp his wrists so that she could draw his attention to her. She wanted him to hear her and to know that she wasn't making the choice lightly. She was doing this because she loved him. Nothing else could make her consider bearing his child despite the risks.

"Listen to me Leatherhead, I want you to hear me completely. I want this. I want your baby. I want a life with you. I know that there are risks but I'm not scared. As long as your with me I can face those risks so please... Won't you believe in me?"

Leatherhead sighed softly and shifted his hands to grip her shoulders gently ans kissed her forehead, and then her cheek. "I do believe in you. I'm just worried that you may change your mind on me." He half lied, knowing that any woman with common sense would change their mind about bearing his child.

"I won't. Sooo... How do we do this? Are you going to throw me down somewhere and have your wicked way with me?"

"Have my wicked- What?" Leatherhead muttered in a slightly offended tone.

He would never treat the woman agreeing to bear his child so shabbily. No, he couldn't start the mating process just yet. First he needed a comfortable nest where he could keep Hanna with him for as long as impregnation took. Which meant that he had to have medical supplies well within reach since mating would take it's toll on her body.

It meant going without food and water for days, weeks, even a month. He had IV equipment at his place that could help keep her healthy until he was sure of conception. And after that he would have to start hunting and prepairing food, protien shakes, and other things to keep her from losing anymore weight than she already would.

He may also need to consider bringing his friends the turtles in on what he was doing just in case he needed Donatello. Sighing because there was so many things that needed to be done he almost missed Hanna asking him if he would stay with her for the night. Glancing down at her, he studied her expression for a moment and then smiled before replying.

"I'll stay with you for as long as I can."

"Okay. Wanna help me drag the matress off of the bed and into here?"

"There's no need." He said as he scooped his female up into his arms as if she were a small child and carefully sank to the floor with her and lay on his back, settling her on top of him with her head laying over his heart.


	9. Chapter 9

_Hanna lay on top of him for a while, content just to listen to the beating of his heart when it occurred to her that they weren't doing anything but cuddling. Pulling back some she gave him a questioning look causing him to chuckle in amusment. _

_Now who was eager much? He thought as she started to open her mouth to ask him if they would begin their new journey together, but he quieted her by placing his fingertips against her lips and making a shushing sound. _

_"Let me rest here with you for now." He said as he dropped his arm to his side. _

_"O-Oh..." Hanna said as she ducked her head for a moment then lay back down and let out a startled yelp when he rolled the two of them so that she was trapped under him. Her eyes wide, her face a fetching shade of pink. _

_She looked absolutely adorable in this moment. So much so that he didn't want it to end. _

(****************************************************************************************************************************************************)

But like all good things, the moment had ended.

Leatherhead thought venomously as he finished tucking the corners of the clean sheets he'd found in a chest, on his bed before turning his attention to cleaning up the rest of his lair. Before catching the thought and frowning in confusion as some deeper part of his mind told him that it was important that he had his lair clean.

It was imperative...

Though for the life of him, he had no idea why.

Picking up the broken bottles and tin cans, he made his way out of the little room and over to the waste basket that he kept next to his computer desk. And started to drop the trash into the basket when he noticed several of the sketches he'd made of his dream girl were out of place, and frowned again. The last time he'd seen the sketches, they had been in his room. Behind closed doors where he could go in at any time and look at them without anyone else being around to look over his shoulder.

So why were the sketches out in the open? Surely he hadn't placed them on the desk. He wasn't that careless. Was he?

Picking up the small stack of papers, he brought them to his nose and inhaled. Smelling several different things attached to the papers. One was a very light floral scent. Something familiar to him. The other was the scent of ocean water and salt.

Then there was the last scent- another familiar one to him. Male. Young... _The turtles_. His mind registered their scent with a small amount of shock. What the devil had they been doing looking at his private pictures? He shook his head and put the sketches down and bared his razor sharp teeth. No. That isn't what he should be asking.

What he should be asking himself was, What the hell gave them the right to come into his home and go through his stuff without his permission? Had they thought he'd let them get away with it?

"Oh hell no." He growled as he turned and went to the entrance of his home. Since he knew they had been in his home and going through his stuff- he'd give them their comeuppance by talking to their father, Splinter.

He'd bet the male would rebuke them in a way that they would never forget.

(*******************************************************************************************************************************************************)

Hanna awoke on the couch, with her living room put back together, and the blanket from her bed draped over her. Looking around the room she noted that Leatherhead was gone and surmized that he had left while she had been sleeping so that he wouldn't be noticed returning to... where ever he went during the day.

Sitting up she stretched her arms over her head and arched her back then tossed the blanket off of her as she realized that she had left out the hamberger meat from last night and would need to throw it all away.

However upon reaching the kitchen she picked up the pan that she had been using to cook with the night before and noted that the meat, grease and everything else was gone.

The pan itself had been licked clean then washed. And the other packet of meat was also gone. Presumably eaten by her man.

Placing the pan back on the stove, Hanna made a funny sound in the back of her throat and wondered if she should find the fact that Leatherhead had licked her pan clean- a turn on or be put off by it.

Because frankly she was getting mixed signals here.

Sighing almost tiredly, she decided to eat some fruit for breakfast then shower and get ready for the day. She had some work that she had fallen behind on and desperately needed to catch up while she could since she got the feeling that becoming pregnant with Leatherhead's child could take some time.

It would also mean making certain changes to her diet and daily routines. After all, what did one of his speices eat as a baby? Hopefully nothing too disgusting. She didn't want what few neighbors she had to think she had gone bat shit crazy. She could wind up locked up if they thought her unbalanced.

And that could spell trouble for both Leatherhead and their little family in the making.

Coming out of her bathroom wearing a violet and black striped long sleeved shirt and a pair of black khaki pants, she ran her fingers through the tangled mess of dark hair hanging over her shoulders. And walked to the nearest window and looked outside. Well, whatever the baby would eat- she knew that Leatherhead would help her take care of it.

(******************************************************************************************************************************************)

The turtles lair was silent as the door slid open, letting the pissed off crocodile step into the lair. Once inside the door, he took a cursory look around the living area to make sure that his friends weren't hiding anywhere in plain sight before slowly making his way over to the stairs and taking them down to the main area of the living room.

He got about half way down when he heard the faint clicking sound that he had come to know as Splinter's thick burled walking stick tapping against the floor as the elderly mutant moved. "Ah, Leatherhead-san. I wondered who would be visiting this early in the morning. How are you?" Splinter's voice called out to him softly as the mutant came out of the kitchen and into view.

"I've been better, Splinter. But that doesn't matter-" Leatherhead said as he neared the mutant rat. Missing the way Splinter subtly lifted his nose in the air and sniffed, his little ears twitching upon catching the faint scent of perfume on Leatherheads scales. Ah, so that was why his sons had been worried about their friend.

Leatherhead had a secret lady friend.

"Oh?" The rat asked curiously as he scratched the underside of this chin for a moment.

"I came to speak with you about your sons trespassing in my home and going through my things without permission-" Splinter gave the large crocodile a surprised look as Leatherhead leaned down at the waist and growled in Splinter's ear. "And I don't appreciate it in the least."


	10. Chapter 10

**_Okay, just answering the questions of a reader in this part. _**

**_1) Yes. Hanna is in her twenties. _**

**_2) I can only imagine that Leatherhead's anatomy is half crocodile since he's an alien in this story instead of a mutant. So I would imagine his anatomy being half croc half...uh...yeah. I would also suspect that there are certain guidelines for a courtship ritual that he has to endure. I thought a small exchange of blood could trigger a chemical reaction in both of them, marking them as mates. _**

**_So yeah, pretty sure that she was surprised if not downright impressed with his size down there. _**

**_3) There are some amusing scenes to come but I don't think having LH go down on Hanna is one of them. With his jaw shape and his teeth- it just wouldn't be safe for Hanna. The same could be said of Hanna going down on LH. _**

**_After all, if he lost himself and gripped her head- he could wind up killing her by ripping her head off or something. God knows he's strong enough. _**

**_Anyways, I'll figure something out in an effort to keep it from being boring so...just keep an eye out._**

(**************************************************************************************************************************************************************)

Splinter set a tea cup down in front of Leatherhead before taking his own seat. "Please forgive my sons, my friend. They have been worried about you since yesterday when you came to visit." Splinter said as he stared at LH over the rim of his tea cup. His friend looked different to him, though he couldn't quite place why.

And then there was his behavior- if his sons had gone into LH's lair while he hadn't been there it could only be because they were looking for an explanation about his strange behavior.

Frankly Splinter thought his sons needed a few extra grueling lessons on tact and stealth for being caught. After all, a caught ninja- was a dead ninja. And since his son's had all been caught more or less intruding in their friend's lair then perhaps he should beat that particular lesson into their skulls again as well.

LH's yellow gold eyes flickered to him for a moment, before he looked away. "I can understand them being worried, Splinter-san. But I have a strong need for privacy right now."

"Yes. I can sense that in you. Though I don't know why-" Splinter said before asking, "Perhaps _you_ mind telling me what has you so anxious?"

Leatherhead jerked a little bit in his seat and looked at Splinter again, his mind kicking into overdrive. Was he anxious? He hadn't noticed. But it would certainly explain why he had this odd sudden sense of urgency. It would certainly explain why he felt the need to suddenly clean his lair of all the debree. LH was quiet for a moment or so as he mulled over the elderly rat's words, then shrugged his broad shoulders.

Unsure of what to say.

He had no idea why he was so anxious, he just was. Just like he didn't know what was driving him to clean his lair. He just knew that he needed it clean. "I...honestly have no idea..." LH finally said.

Splinter made a humming sound and took a sip of his tea before lowering the cup and saying bluntly, "perhaps your instincts are pushing you to nest subconsciously." LH sputtered as a vivid red flush worked it's way up his neck.

"I am not nesting!"

"Hn." Splinter said without much conviction. After all the smell of the softly floral scent clinging to the crocodile was more or less a dead give away that his nesting period coming up. But Splinter was a tad bit puzzled as to why Leatherhead didn't seem to notice such a small detail. _Perhaps my son's were right to worry. Our friend is not himself. _

But that wasn't going to stop him from reteaching his son's the importance of manners, stealth and a few other things. LH sighed as the tip of his tail twitched a little bit. He didn't have time for this- this, whatever it was. No, he needed to get back to his lair and resume his cleaning then go over his medical supplies.

(*****************************************************************************************************************************************************)

Hanna was sitting on her porch watching the sunset when she heard the engine of a car and inwardly groaned as a sky blue Pontiac pulled up to the house and Mrs. Morrison and a large muscular man with long ash blonde hair wearing a black vest and torn jeans.

_That bitch!_ Hanna thought darkly as she slammed her hands down on the porch railing, snapping the wood under her hands in a fit of temper as she heard Morrison call out, "Yoo-hoo! Honey, are you home?"

_I'll kill her this time and feed her to the sharks, so help me god- _She thought as she growled as the elderly woman and her companion came into view. "Oh! There you are Hanna dear. I figured that since you turned down all other offers from my buyer that having someone come as a rap for that person to talk to you might be for the best." Morrison said cheerfully, though Hanna noted with some satisfaction that she was eyeing the broken porch railing warily.

_If you think that is intimidating then wait until I pick up your car and throw it at your head, you old witch- _"Didn't I tell you multipule times that I'm not interested in selling? Why don't you fuck off already." Hanna said rudely as she turned to go inside of her house when the blonde man suddenly placed himself between her and the door.

Which wasn't a smart move since she was feeling more than a little pissed at the moment. Looking up at his face, she gave him a killer's glare. Hoping to incinerate him on the spot as Morrison chirped, "Hanna, hon. This is my grandson Hun. He's here on behalf of my buyer. Won't you please give him a few minutes to talk to you?"

Hanna glanced back at the woman and felt the insane urge to punch her in the face. Hun? As in _the_ Hun of the Purple Dragons? And he was standing on her front porch. Glaring at the elderly woman she spat, "Oh, you stupid bitch." If the woman was shocked by her language or hostility, she didn't show it. Hun however did.

He gave her a blood chilling smirk just a moment before bringing his fist down on her back between her shoulders, catching her off guard as he drove her to her knees shaking and gasping in pain.

_Merde! _It felt like her back and neck had both been broken! Her vision blurred and she suddenly found it hard to breathe as a large hand grabbed her by the hair and forced her to her feet. She saw what looked like a smirking pair of lips moving, but no sound came out. And the next thing she knew...was nothing but darkness.


	11. Chapter 11

_He gave her a blood chilling smirk just a moment before bringing his fist down on her back between her shoulders, catching her off guard as he drove her to her knees shaking and gasping in pain._

_Merde! It felt like her back and neck had both been broken! Her vision blurred and she suddenly found it hard to breathe as a large hand grabbed her by the hair and forced her to her feet. She saw what looked like a smirking pair of lips moving, but no sound came out. And the next thing she knew...was nothing but darkness. _

(*******************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************)

Hanna awoke moments later to a sharp slap in the face that forced her head to snap to the side so violently that she would have sworn that her neck was about to break. But then that was the problem with her disorder. Her bones could take punishment, could take strain and were difficult to break even under enormous pressure. But it didn't erase the pain she felt.

Nor did it stop her flesh and organs from suffering the huge price that came from having a disorder like hers.

She blinked a few times to clear the tears from her eyes and slowly took stock of her wounds. So far she could feel the severe bruising between her shoulders. The pain in her neck that made her want to roll her shoulders and pop it- the split lip and bruise on the side of her face.

Keeping her head down to give the appearance of still being unconcious and took in her surroundings. She could see through her hair that she was still in her home. Apparrently Mrs. Morrison and Hun hadn't wanted to slap her around outside where the neighbors could possibly drive by and see.

That was stupid of them since it meant that she didn't have to hide herself in plain veiw anymore. She saw a blurr of movement out of the corner of her eye and held herself perfectly still as a large hand reached down and grasped her shirt and dragged her upright and into a chair.

She let out a low moan, acting as if she were more hurt than she was as she saw Mrs. Morrison walking towards her and closed her eyes just in time for the woman to sweep aside the curtain of long dark hair.

"Hn. She's still out. Better hit her again Hun." She said as she dropped Hanna's hair and started to step aside when Hanna jumped up and put her in a headlock and looked at Hun who gave her a wide eyed look, his hand poised in the air to strike as Hanna tossed her hair back away from her face and gave him a scary smile.

"That's right Hun, hit me again. And when you do I'll break dear old grammy's neck."

Hun's look never changed as he looked at Mrs. Morrison and slowly put his hand down so as not to antagonize Hanna into hurting the elderly woman. "Let her go." He finally said in a somewhat authoritive tone. Hanna gave him a funny look and tightened her grip on the woman.

"No. You see you're both here without my permission. Do you know what that means Hun?" Hanna asked him in a slightly mocking tone. The man shook his head slowly and Hanna laughed, the sound much too dark to be considered real laughter. "It means that since you're both on privately owned land- I can kill you both for trespassing and say that you broke into the house. Isn't that the funniest thing?"

"You aren't the type of gal to- _Oh!_" Mrs. Morrison started to say when Hanna cruelly cut off her air supply, leaving the woman flailing in her grasp. Her eyes wide and terrified. Hun lunged at them, trying to get to Hanna and a moment before his body collided with her own there was a sickening crack of bones breaking as Mrs. Morrison went still and stopped breathing as the three went crashing to the floor in a tangle of limbs.

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Leatherhead had been cleaning since early morning and had just finished making his lair as sterile as possible when he checked the clock on the wall and noted the time. _She is probably waiting on me,_ he thought before catching the thought and frowning as he wondered to himself, _Who is she? _Not that asking himself that mattered since he was already moving.

He'd left the lair somewhere behind him twenty minutes or so ago. _Where am I going? _He wondered as he made his way to the old tunnel where the ocean met the sewer system and slowly waded in.

The water felt good on the skin of his hands, brushing his thighs as he waded deeper until he got to the place where he ducked down and pushed off and disappeared under the water. Heading somewhere with a sense of urgency that he didn't quite understand. All he knew was that he was heading towards something life altering.

Something that he couldn't live without.

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Hanna and Hun ahd been trading blows for the past twenty five minutes and with each blow she took Hanna was becoming more and more afraid that this was a fight she wasn't going to win. Hun was furious about the death of Mrs. Morrison. And even though it had been an accident, Hanna could sort of understand where he was coming from.

After all, if anyone had had the audacity to kill her grandmother in front of her- she would have annihilated them with extreme prejudice too.

Hun grabbed her and flung her into the wall then picked up her late grandfather's prized solid oak coffee table and broke it over her head and back, driving her to her knees again as she spat out the blood she had welling up in her mouth. Her vision blurred as spots danced before her eyes. Her breathing was labored as she tried to sense what he was going to do next as something thin and cord like slipped around her neck and she was hauled to her feet then up, up, up into the air until she was hanging.

She kicked out with her feet, connecting with something and tried to scream as she was roughly jerked this way and that. She couldn't breathe! _Leatherhead! Please, hurry! _She didn't want him to find her hanging from something, cold and dead. She felt tears trickle down her pale cheeks and tried to grasp the cord holding her up and pull herself up when she suddenly thought she smelled smoke.

"This will teach you not to fuck with me, you bitch." She heard Hun's voice from a distance as she heard the far away sound of breaking glass as her hand slipped.


	12. Chapter 12

He found himself slowly walking out of the ocean at a beach, the wet sand squishy between his toes. Ah, he loved this feeling. He had dreamt of it for so long. Sighing in contentment, he looked around the beach and noted that it looked exactly like the one from his dreams and paused just shy of a small sand bank, making sure that he was still hidden from view.

Part of his mind recognizing that he was out in the open and being in such an area was dangerous to him while part of him looked for the path that led to the black shingled roof in the distance. He wasn't sure what it was, but he felt a strange tugging sensation in the region of his heart. He wanted to go up that path.

No, he _needed_ to go there.

Frowning, he tried to push the feeling away when his sharp sense of smell caught the smell of smoke and his mind was seized by an irrational fear that he couldn't shove aside or suppress.

Moving quickly he found the path and started up it only to stop cold when he saw Hun of the Purple Dragons run to a car parked a ways away from the house with a small body tucked under his arm, and felt his lips peel back from his teeth as he spied red-orange flames licking at one of the windows inside as Hun climbed into the car and peeled away just as fast as his vehicle would go.

Growling Leatherhead's pupils dialated to nearly invisible slits as he got up and ran as fast as he could up to the house and threw himself through front door and nearly swore as the heat hit him. _Dear god- _Was anyone here? Or had Hun taken the person that the house belonged too with him? He wondered as it occured to him that he very well may find a few corpses here.

He gave the living room a quick look, his eyes tearing up from the smoke as he used his tail to sweep aside pieces of burning furniture as he saw something that made him want to howl in grief. There in the middle of the room, surrounded by flames was a young human woman with long dark hair, hanging by her neck by a cord from a light fixture.

_Hanna! _The thought pierced his mind like a bullet, screaming at him to move. Bellowing in rage he forced himself to move and threw himself forward, using his tail again to clear the way for him.

Then reaching out he wrapped an arm around around the woman's legs and lifted her up just enough to use his claws to cut through the cord she was hanging from, then shifting his hold on her until she was carefully cradled in his arms- He made his way outside and jumped the porch and moved a good distance away from the burning house so that he could attend to the female's wounds.

Laying her on the ground he went into automatic doctor mode and gently removed what was left of the cord from around her neck then checked her breathing. With the cord gone he was better able to see the dark bruises on her skin, covering her neck and wondered if her wind pipe had been crushed when he found nothing. Not even a pulse.

"No. Please no." He said softly as tears stung his eyes and he turned her over a little bit and thumped her on the back a few times, trying to get her to draw air into her lungs since he couldn't preform CPR. He managed to thump her on the back five times before he finally got a reaction out of her. The shuddering gasp that shook her entire body had to be among one of the most beautiful sounds he had ever heard before as she curled her body in on itself slightly and gave a few choking sobs.

Carefully turning her back over onto her back, he laid her back down on the sand and brushed some of her dark hair back from her face so that he could see her better and nearly died of shock right then and there when he found himself staring at the face of his dream girl.

She opened her eyes and looked at him, her expression relieved/pained as she mouthed his name. Shocking him even further as she slowly lifted bruised and bloody hands and wrapped her arms around his neck.

Holding onto him as if he were her lifeline.

Wrapping his arms around her, he looked down at the top of her head, buried against his wet lab jacket then looked back at the house. A million questions swirling in his mind. But first and foremost he needed to get this woman away from the beach and somewhere safe. She needed medical attention and other things he wasn't sure that he could supply her with.

Scooping her up in his arms, he stood up and started walking back down the beach to the waters and slowly waded in. Ever mindful that the woman was wounded and couldn't breathe under water like he could. So he would have to make his way back to the pipe he had come from before dunking them under the water.

Hopefully by then she might have recovered enough to hold her breath.

He doubted it, but...well, it wasn't like they would be under water for more than a minute. Then once they were in the tunnels he could decide if he should call the turtles or not.


	13. Chapter 13

Leatherhead made it to the tunnel in record time due to the fact that the woman in his arms was shivering so violently that he feared she was starting to get hypothermia. The discoloring of her skin under the bruises and the bluish purple tint to her lips only frightened him more as he set his feet down under the churning waters.

Thankful that it was shallow enough in this area to keep the woman's head from slipping under water since she had lost consciousness not long after he had scooped her up and waded into the ocean.

Most likely from shock.

Whether it was the shock of the beating she had been put through. The shock of losing her home or simply something else entirely- he couldn't say. Looking down at the woman's face he couldn't help but notice the striking resembalance she bore to his dream girl and the sketches he had and wondered why- if only for a moment or so- that was.

Surely he had never seen this woman before in his life. Yet something about her face, her long dark hair, the way she looked so vulnerable in her present state, simply tugged at his heartstrings. Shifting his hold on her so that one arm was free, he used his other to secure her against his body, her chin resting on his shoulder so that when they resurfaced on the other side he could pull them out of the water.

He just hoped that she didn't swallow too much while they were under. Salt water was bad for humans ingest.

Reaching up he absently ran his fingers through her tangled, wet hair, as he found himself speaking to her in a low almost crooning tone as he rubbed the side of his face against the top of her head, "We're going under for just a moment. Try- Try not to breathe too much. I know that it hurts but- I don't want you to drown."

Followed by the sloshing of water as he slowly and carefully lowered them further into the water, pausing only briefly when he felt the woman shudder in his hold and bury her face against the side of his neck and made a barely audible whimpering sound.

A moment later they were completely under and Leatherhead could just barely recall using his free hand to try and cover her nose and mouth- his efforts of trying to create a small air mask for her until their heads were no longer under water- when he removed his hand and heard a small wheezing sound.

_Almost finished... _He thought in relief as he said, "Okay I'm going to get us out of the water now. Just hold on a bit longer." As he made his way over to the narrow ledge sticking up out of the water and carefully hauled himself up.

Water ran down his skin like tiny rivers, soaking the ledge as he shifted his hold on the woman again and gently laid her face down across one leg so that she could cough up what water she may have swallowed while he gently thumped her on the back and silently debated with himself on calling his friends- the turtles.

Donatello had far more medical experience than he did when dealing with human's. Yet some part of him that he didn't recognize was reluctant to part with the female. However he knew that if he kept her with him her chances of survival were greatly diminished.

And that was something he absolutely could _not_ tolerate.

For some reason he still couldn't fathom this female was important to him. Her survival was important to him. To put it quite simply- she was _his_. His...female? His heart pounded against his ribs at the mere thought.

_Good god, what am I doing thinking about her as my mate when I should be getting her help- _Her breathing had just become so shallow that he wasn't even sure that she was still alive until she made another low sound in the back of her throat as he gentle scooped her up in his arms and decided that calling the turtles would take too much time.

It would be best to drop in unannounced and catch the turtles by surprise. Splinter and Leonardo may not like it, but he honestly didn't care since they wouldn't have a chance to turn him away.

Getting up, Leatherhead did the only thing that he could think of that could get the woman the help she needed more quickly- he started running as fast as he could, hoping that he would make it to the lair in time to save his precious cargo.


	14. Chapter 14

Sorry it's short everyone.

I had a friend die suddenly yesterday and am just a bit distracted plus battling depression. Not fun, but I'm I'm trying here. Hopefully the next chapter will be longer and less technical.

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"One thousand one... One thousand two... One thousand three-"

"How long are we supposed to do flips?" Mikey whined.

"Till Master Splinter says to stop." Raph said as he flipped backwards again, sweat rolling down his face and neck as he quickly moved back into place only to repeat the process again.

"But it's past ten at night!" Mikey said, as if that meant anything to them.

"So?" Leo grunted.

"Master Splinter has been in bed for over two hours!" Mikey wailed. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at eachother as if that thought had never occurred to them.

"Well if that's true then we can probably stop doing flips... Maybe pick up where we left off tomorrow before training." Don said as Raph moved over to the dojo doors and opened them a slit, just to peek out and make sure that Splinter really was in bed.

He had expected their father to be completely clear of the living room area but instead, Splinter was dozing in his worn out recliner.

Out in plain sight. Where he could obviously catch them if they tried to escape their punishment. "Damn, he's sleeping in his chair." Raph muttered in a sullen tone as he looked back at his brothers. They each adopted an expression of despair ecept for Leo who seemed oddly at peace with the fact that he may be stuck doing flips all night.

But that was old fearless for ya, always training.

Don sighed and dropped down to the mats and wiped the sweat from his face with the back of one hand. His muscles were burning from over use. His breath coming out in short little pants when they heard the lair door opening, instantly waking Splinter as they came out to see who was coming to visit at such a late hour.

They were surprised to see Leatherhead standing in the doorway. But what really surprised them was the fact that he was holding an unconscious human woman, his expression was panicked.

"Leatherhead what are you-"

"Help! Help her- She's wounded!" Moving quickly Don ran across the living room and carefully took the woman from his distraught friend and looked down at her. The human was between the ages of ninteen and twenty six, her thick dark hair was wet and clinging to her bruised and cut up skin.

Her lips were an off bluish purple and there was blood coming from somewhere hidden under her shirt. But the most noticeable wound was the markings around her neck. Both the blackish purple hand print and the thin angry reddish black coil that looked like it had come from a wire or thin rope.

Frowning Don looked back at Leatherhead who was looking at the woman as if his heart were shattering to pieces in his chest, and took a moment to nod before turning and rushing into his lab and laying the woman down on the bed and quickly turned on the light and grabbed a pair of scissors so that he could cut her wet clothing off of her as Leo and Master Splinter came into the lab to help.

Don took a moment to access the woman's wounds. And muttered a soft apology as he checked her neck, needing to know how bad the damage was. Luckily for her it was nothing more than painful bruising. Most people with such severe wounds would have suffered a broken neck.

As it was she would need an oxygen mask to help her breathe. But it looked like she wouldn't need any tubes down her throat to help out with that, _thank_ _god_. Don thought as he picked up the scissors and got to work on her clothing as he told his brother and master that he needed towels and blankets- as many as they could spare.

He needed to treat her wounds then get her body temp back up to normal before she started going into shock or something.


	15. Chapter 15

It took Don most of the night to clean, stitch up, bandage and re heat the woman's body to an acceptable ninty eight point six degree's before moving on to smoothing a healing salve on the worst of her bruises before covering her up and clicking off the light beside the bed so that she could sleep in peace while Raph and Mike tried to calm LH.

But from what Don was hearing, his friend was being difficult and had already broken several pieces of furniture. Master Splinter's favorite chair and the TV included. "Leo, Master Splinter, go out there and tell Leatherhead that he can come in now and see the woman, but he has to be calm if he does. I can't stress that enough..."

"Alright Don." Leo said tiredly as Splinter groused beside his eldest son,

"An explination on why my favorite chair met with such an unfortunate accident would be nice as well." Don made a non commental sound as he made his way back to his desk and flopped down in his chair while Leo and Splinter left the lab.

He could hear small snippets of conversation between Leo and Leatherhead going on outside, but his mind was too tired to really focus on any of it. And before even a minute had passed Leatherhead appeared, his face was unnaturally pale under his scales, his eyes had a strange look to them and his body language practically screamed **_'Trouble!_'** with a capital _**T**_.

But the moment the crocodile's golden yellow eyes swept the room and found the woman's figure laying so still across the room, Don saw something he had never seen his friend do before. He broke down and started crying.

Momentarilly startled out of any plans to rest, Don simply watched Leatherhead wide eyed as he walked up to the woman's bedside and gently took one of her fragile little bruised hands in his own and began speaking a mile a minute. Pausing briefly from time to time to apologize for something before continuing on with his babbling.

It was only when Don managed to catch the words, 'nest' and 'children' that he finally found his voice and asked, "Leatherhead, who is this woman?" Although he had a sneaky suspicion as to whom she was, Don said nothing as LH turned his head just enough to look at him from over one of his shoulders, and laid the woman's hand carefully down on the bed beside her and lifted his hands up to touch his face for a second before paling even more and saying.

"Well given the way I'm acting- I'd say that she was my mate... But I thought it was impossible to mate with humans. Donatello, my friend, what's happening to me?"

Don grabbed something from a little brown leather bag and got up and made his way over to his friend and laid something cold over his chest where his heart was thudding in his ribs in panic. Don listened for a moment before stepping back away from the crocodile and frowning as he asked, "How do your people begin the mating process Leatherhead?"

"Usually we measure a person's worth. Sort of stare them in the eyes and make a mental imprint. Although we sometimes imprint on other things about our potential mate. Scale color. Scent. Teeth. Claws-" Don held his hand up to silence the croc, indicating that he'd heard enough then asked,

"Then why do you think that this woman is your mate? She has none of those things."

"She doesn't have too. All I have to do is be near her and I ache-"

"Whoa! _**TMI**_ there big guy."

"Well, you asked." LH snapped, his tail twitching slightly at the tip as Don ask him in a slightly nervous tone,

"What did you mean by, She doesn't have too?"

_Leatherhead looked down at the woman and closed his eyes for a moment as images of a small body sinking in murky water flashed through his head. It was like a dream he was just waking up from. It was completely surreal to him. Yet he could see an image of the small body becoming closer and closer until he could see the dark hair floating around a lovely pale face. _

_And the eyes... There was no trace of fear or rejection in them. There had been nothing but strength; both physical and mental. And compassion coupled with a small amount of curiosity. Nothing he should be alarmed over. _

_It was like how small children got curious over the different shapes and colors in the world around them. _

_And then he saw it, a small, delicately boned hand reaching out for him. He moved in closer and felt that hand trail along his snout and had instantly been hooked. He had felt it in his heart and soul. This female would be his mate._ _His other half. His everything. _

Opening his eyes again he looked down at the woman- no that wasn't right, out of the million things running through his head he managed to pick up her name. Hanna. His mate's name was Hanna. He saw an olive green hand pass in front of his face and growled at the person attached to the hand, _"What?" _

"I asked you what you meant-"

"Because I can smell myself on her. It happens after intercourse. Whatever my scent is- will alter the scent of the female."


	16. Chapter 16

Don made a choking sound as he digested what Leatherhead had just said to him. But he was having a little trouble wrapping his mind around the fact that someone as** _huge_** as Leatherhead had somehow managed to do what he had thought was impossible. And then the full impact of what he had said finally hit Don and his breath left him in a long hiss from between clenched teeth, leaving him just a little bit dizzy once there was nothing left in his lungs.

There were aliens, mutants, and- and a government military that would stop at nothing to dissect them- after them.

And as large and protective as LH was, he wasn't infallible. With enough tranquilizers and bullets- he could be stopped. Killed even. Then what would happen to the woman?

She'd be torn apart in more ways than one. Literally.

"Oh god LH-" Don said softly as he looked at his friend with worried golden brown eyes. Lh showed no sign that he had heard him. His entire focus was on the woman, her small hand once again clasped in his own as he knelt down on the cold floor and rubbed the side of his face- just under his left eye- against her hand.

Hoping that in some way she would know he was there.

Don stood there for a moment or two watching his friend, feeling slightly like a peeping tom for seeing him like this with his mate. Not knowing what else to do, he murmered to LH to call him if anything happened that he felt that he couldn't handle.

Not that LH was lacking in medical knowledge of any kind, it was just that he had never really treated anything above a sprain or broken bone on a human before. So Don was fairly sure that he may panic if the woman showed difficulty breathing and such- Especially since LH's survival hinged on her own.

Turning on his heel he quietly made his way out of the lab, ignoring the looks his brothers and father gave him as he passed them on his way to the kitchen. Once in there, he grabbed his favorite coffee mug and was about to get some of the freshly brewed coffee in the coffee pot when he heard his father ask from the kitchen doorway, "Donatello? Is Leatherhead calm now?"

Sighing, Don set his mug aside and turned to look at his father as he nodded his head. "Yeah. He's fine now. He was just freaked because-" He stopped speaking and looked away from his father's calculating gaze. He could only imagine what Splinter would say, much less think, once he knew that LH had taken a fragile human mate.

On one hand Splinter would be happy for their friend, if not a little bit worried about the woman. And on the other hand there was the whole; _We must not socialize with humans rule. _

Humans meant exposure. And exposure meant death.

But with the woman already knowing about LH and being mated to him then it was just a matter of time before she found out about them. And since LH had trusted her enough to mate, then mabe everything would be okay.

He heard the scraping of Splinters walking stick on the floor before he felt his father very gently place his hand on his arm to draw his attention. Don looked down at his father's questioning/concerned expression and sighed again knowing that he would have to finish his sentence inevitably. "LH was just a little freaked because...he's mated to the woman he brought here."

Splinters eyes widened to nearly the size of small plates as he took a few moments to digest this news before he finally said, "Oh my-"

"Yeah." Don said in a bemused tone before looking at him with a stern expression on his face and quickly saying,

"We keep the fact that you can mate with humans from Mikey."

"You don't have to worry father, I wasn't planning to tell."

"Then what will you tell your brothers?"

"That the woman is LH's special friend and nothing more."


	17. Chapter 17

Leo and Raph stood at the top of the stairs, just outside their bedrooms watching the exchange between Splinter and Don. So Leatherhead had somehow managed to snag himself a mate... It was a little bit difficult for them wrap their minds around the crocadile managing to do what they themselves had thought impossible, but aside from that- they were happy, if not a little worried about their friend and his mate.

LH's girl had been badly wounded, and none of the wounds had looked like they had come from him. Which meant that someone else had hurt her. The question was _who_. They would have asked LH but he wasn't focused on anything but the woman.

So asking him anything while she was unconcious was out of the question.

He would likely answer their questions once she was awake and doing a bit better. Then again he might up and decide to leave his mate with them in the dead of night and hunt down the one/ones responsible for her injuries himself.

One never really knew what the crocodile was thinking until they were staring down the business end of his razor sharp teeth.

Leo shifted beside Raph, drawing the turtles attention from the kitchen area so that he could look at his brother as LH peered around the corner of one of the lab doors. His normally serene golden eyes were narrowed as he seemed to be scanning the lair for a moment before coming out of the lab, and making his way over to the couch and pulled two of the three cushions off of the seat then quickly made his way back into the lab.

Leo and Raph both blinked for a moment. Confusion etched into their features as Don peeked out of the kitchen and called out, "Was that LH just now?"

"Uh..."

"Yeah." Both Raph and Leo replied.

"Did he say what he wanted or needed?" Don called out. Both turtles looked at the couch and then at Don and shook their heads, they had no idea why LH would dissect their couch but if they told Don about it then he might know what LH was up too.

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In the lab Leatherhead was working quickly to create a protective nest for his mate to rest in while she was wounded. Using small bits and pieces he'd found in the lab after moving Hanna from the bed- mattress and all- before he'd left to get the couch cushions to use as an outside wall of the nest. He supposed it would have been better to simply coil his body around her own smaller one to protect it.

But that idea hadn't occurred to him until he'd gotten a good foundation for the nest started. Not only that but he doubted that she'd survive being moved again in her current condition.

She was having trouble breathing as it was because of the severe bruising on her neck.

Pausing in his endevor, he reached down and wiped away some sweat that had started to appear at her hairline before resuming his work and wondered why this had happened to her. His Hanna was a sweet and gentle maiden. Not some damned savage to be beaten until she was bloody and hung by her neck until dead.

No- his beloved deserved better than that.

Pausing in his work again, he reached down for a second time and used his claw tipped hand to wipe the sweat away from her skin and froze when she turned her head and pressed her face against his palm and let out a small broken whimper that caused his heart to ache just hearing it. Running the back of his hand along the curve of her cheek gently, Leatherhead made a soft crooning sound, trying to comfort her while she lay trapped between life and death.

"Hush my love... Hush. I'm right here." He said, his rumbling voice echoing off of the walls of the room as he thought, _No one will hurt you while I'm here. _As he continued to run the back of his hand along the curve of her cheek even after she settled back down into a fitful sleep while he resumed his work on the nest.

Unlike the one he was going to make in his lair, the purpose of this nest was entirely for healing and protection. And he would guard it as if he would guard a nest of his own offspring. His fierce need to see to it that his mate came to no further harm was first and foremost in his mind.

He had seen Hun leaving Hanna's home before he had found her in the deplorable state she was currently in and knew that the large human was responsible. And while his rational mind_ knew_ that Hun couldn't reach Hanna here in the turtle's lair, the more primitive part of his mind wasn't planning on taking any more chances.

At least not until he did something about the man.

It took an hour... Maybe longer due to the fact that he lost all concept of time- but by the time he finally finished the nest and disappeared inside so that he could coil his large body around hers without hurting her, he felt exhausted. Mentally and physically.

Rubbing the underside of his lower jaw against the top of her head, he felt his eyes droop a bit and let them close for now since he couldn't sense anyone near the nest or in the lab.


	18. Chapter 18

Leatherhead didn't move from Hanna's side for three days. With the exception of chasing Mikey out of the lab with a ferocious roar that caused the young turtle to drop the dinner he had fixed for the tempermental crocodile with a loud girly-like scream as he scampered out of the large room just as fast as his legs would allow.

And it was on the third day when LH was curled up in the nest he had made, while watching the door of the lab for intruders, that Hanna woke up.

She lay there for a moment, her mind feeling sluggish, her body aching as she looked around- trying to get her bearings before she tried moving her arm a little bit. The moment LH felt her fingers ghosting along his arm, his large body jerked and he looked back at her, his golden eyes widening slightly in surprise.

"Hanna?" LH rasped as he moved his body so that it loomed over her own, his broad shoulders slouched slightly so that he wouldn't knock the nest down on them as he carefully gathered up his mate's body.

_"Leatherhead?"_ Hanna said, her voice rough from the wounds on her throat and from disuse.

"Hanna. My love, I was so worried..." Leatherhead said softly as he leaned down enough to lick her cheek in a parody of a kiss that made his heart flutter. She was awake! His mate was awake! "Forgive me for not being with you when you were hurt-" He said, his tone heartbreakingly soft as he gave her a slight sqeeze.

She gave him a pained smile and gripped the lapels of his jacket and kissed the tip of his snout. _"It's okay Leatherhead. I wouldn't have wanted you to wind up hurt because of me." _

"It's my job both as a male and your mate to get hurt because of you." He growled softly before licking her cheek again.

She gave him another small pained smile as her eyes slipped closed for a moment as she tried to shift her body closer to his own only to be thwarted by his hands gripping her shoulders gently, yet firmly, holding her in place so that he could lick her cheek affectionately a few more times before shifting his attention to her lips, and proceeded to do the same there inbetween murmered words.

"My Hanna. My angel. My love."

Hanna's fingers tightened on the lapels of his jacket as she shivered. The wet, gentle rasp of Leatherhead's tongue along her lower lip exciting her even in her wounded state. Wiggling in his grasp, she was just a little bit startled when he growled low in his throat and buried his face against her neck and breathed in her scent as his whole body trembled with longing.

His mate wanted him. Despite her bruised and battered body, she wanted him. He could smell it. Yet he couldn't act on his impulses and take her or he might hurt her more than she already was. He could however releave them both without causing further harm to her.

Maybe. Possibly.

He hoped.

"Hanna... I can smell you-" He said breathlessly, his gold eyes changing color to a deeper molten gold as his tail snaked along one of her legs causing her to twitch slightly.

_"I know- I'm sorry Leatherhead." _

"Do not be sorry, my love. I know well how being mated works-" He said as he cradled her against his body and shifted one of his large hands to the back of her head, pillowing it as her hair slipped inbetween his fingers. Causing his skin to tingle pleasantly. "Do you need anything? Food? Drink? More pillows and cushions to lounge on?"

_"I think a small cat nap will work for now." _Hanna said in a drowsy tone as he smiled down at her, then leaned down and nuzzled her cheek lovingly.

"Then take your nap. And I'll be here to wait on you hand and foot when you wake." He said as her eyes closed and she quietly slipped back to sleep.


	19. Chapter 19

True to his word, the second she woke up from her nap- Leatherhead was already anticipating her every need. Moving her from the nest he'd made so that he could her bathe her, help her use the facilities, and check her wounds before redressing her in fresh clothes that April had brought down days ago and picking her up bridal style in his arms and making his way to the kitchen.

Where he chased Mikey out with a loud growl after setting her down in one of the seats at the table, as the turtle stupidly offered to order a pizza for all of them to eat for dinner. Hanna had come dangerously close to dying, and while he wasn't the best cook in the world, he could fix something that was at least nutritious and eatable enough to help her regain her strength again.

Anyways he just didn't want her eating Mikey's cooking or anything that he labeled as junk food. For one, it just wasn't healthy. And two...her body couldn't take much at the moment. So having her eat something healthy was for the best.

Besides if she was going to bear his offspring at some point in the near future then she needed certain suppliments in her diet ahead of time. This way she got what she needed to get well and also got what she needed to give birth to a nice healthy clutch of children.

Rummaging around, Leatherhead found a nice medium sized pot and looked over at Hanna. She was slightly slumped over in her seat, her dark hair falling into her face, framing it. "Dearest?" Leatherhead said in an hesitant tone.

_"I'm awake."_ Hanna rasped tiredly. Even though she had just only been awake for a few minutes and Leatherhead had done most of the work in taking care of her, she felt as if she had been awake for a month straight. Her body still felt heavy and sluggish. Her muscles and limbs ached. Her bruises throbbed in time with her heartbeat-

She felt Leatherhead slip his fingers under her chin and gently raise her head a bit so that she was looking at him.

"If you would like to rest more, we can put this off for just a bit longer. I'm sure that Mikey won't mind." Somewhere outside of the kitchen Hanna heard an unknown male voice say sarcastically,

"Oh no. Mikey doesn't mind. He's just starving to death here!" Causing Leatherhead to turn his head a fraction of an inch and curl his upper lip up to show his teeth in a display of irritation as another unknown male voice snapped,

"Shut it Mike!"

"Yeah bro, don't piss off LH in front of his friend. She's hurt and he's feeling protective of her right now." Another male voice chimmed in. Hanna listened intently for a moment, tilting her head a little bit in Leatherhead's grasp before looking back at him questioningly. He merely gave her one of his awkward smiles and a small shrug before asking her if her neck hurt.

She nodded just a bit, but that didn't concern her much at the moment. What really irritated her aside from the fact that she was so tired, was that her mouth was so dry that it felt like she was trying to talk around sandpaper. "I'll eat Leatherhead-" Hanna said after a moment or so before asking, "While I wait can I have something to drink?"

LH's eyes widened a bit at the small request and he quickly moved away to get her something to drink while she waited. Going to the fridge, he found some juice and pulled it out and then grabbed a cup and poured some into it then set the juice down on the counter so that he could look for a straw.

Once he found one he put it in the cup and then set it before Hanna so that she could drink while he worked on fixing her something to eat. After several minutes of going through the fridge, freezer, and cabinets- he finally found something that he thought would be easy on her stomach. After reading the back pannel for vitamins and nutrients, he finally went about fixing what he had found.

It took three _disastrous_ rubbery, charcoal, flaming, tries but he finally got it right and finished his cooking up by drizzling some honey he'd found sitting on the microwave over the mixture and then dug a spoon out of the drawer next to the sink and then turned to Hanna.

She was resting her chin on the table with a bored look on her face in a position that couldn't have been comfortable for her considering her neck wounds. "Are you alright dearest?"

_"I'm perfect. Just watching you catch things on fire." _

He smiled and set the bowl down in front of her and watched her carefully as she raised her head and grasped the spoon in her hand and started to eat. Cream of Wheat wasn't her favorite food.

But it reminded her of her grandparents when they were still alive, which is probably why she tried to clean the bowl for Leatherhead despite the fact that her stomach protested the first few bites of food by cramping viciously.

"How is it?" Leatherhead asked. She looked up at him and swallowed what was in her mouth and said,

"It's good... Thanks."

Leatherhead looked her over then reached out and brushed his fingertips along her lower lip. Her coloring was a little better now but that didn't mean that she should lie to him about her food. After all if she found the taste bad, then he could fix something else. Perhaps crush some of the fruit he'd found in the fridge and let her eat that.

"Hanna, if the food isn't to your taste-" He started to say when she gave him a look before saying,

"It isn't about the taste Leatherhead. It's about eating something before I become too weak to do so without help. Besides I have no idea how long I've been out of it so I have to eat what I can."

"I know." Leatherhead said as she finally put her spoon down and pushed her bowl away.

"I think I'm done now."

"Alright-" He said as he picked the bowl up and moved it to the counter, a small pleased smile curving his lips. Once he set the bowl down on the counter he then turned back to her and bent down and scooped her up out of her chair. "Lets get you back to bed then so you can rest some more."


	20. Chapter 20

And...we're moving on to death threats now?

Seriously?

I'm not sure if I should feel flattered or scared.

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Leatherhead waas once again curled around Hanna as she rested when Mikey came into the lab carrying a small stack of comics. Smelling the young turtle, LH lifted his head just enough to peek out of the opening he had left so that he and Hanna could come and go as needed, and looked at his young friend.

"It isn't safe here, Mikey." He said softly, feeling a little more at peace now that he knew his mate would live.

Mikey approached the nest slowly- his mind replaying earlier events and making him display more caution than normal as he got closer and closer to the jaws that had snapped at him several times before.

Leatherhead got up, moving away from Hanna a bit while keeping his body close to the floor as he turned himself to face the opening so that his eerie yellow eyes were locked on Mikey's form as the turtle finally stopped moving just out of arms reach of him. And set the small pile of comics down before saying, "I thought you and your friend might get bored. So I found some of my old comics for you both to read until she's feeling one hundred percent."

Mikey gently pushed the stack towards LH and then retreated a bit so that his arm wouldn't be torn off or something.

LH looked at the small stack of comics and then glanced back at Mikey, his yellow eyes warm with affection for the young turtle for thinking of him and his mate even after his angry actions earlier. Reaching out, LH used one large hand to collect the comics and sat up a bit. Making sure to keep his figure hunched over so that he didn't bring the nest down on himself and Hanna as he checked out the comics.

And while comics did not feed his intellect, nor the scientific part of his mind- he was nevertheless grateful for Mikey's gesture. Especially since the comics were She-Ra and He-Man. Some of her favorite childhood comics.

Leatherhead smiled as he placed the comics in his lap and extended one of his arms so that his hand rested knuckles down on the floor. The action meant to coax Mikey a little closer so that he could shake his hand or give it a small squeeze to show his appreciation.

Mikey, being in this position many times before knew what he was trying to do and moved just a bit closer and slipped his smaller hand into Leatherheads and let the large crocodile give his fingers a squeeze.

"Thank you my friend." LH said gently before noticing Hanna's foot twitch just a bit. Back and forth slowly, almost like a cat's tail.

It was a tick she'd had since she was a small child.

One that he had noticed on many different occasions. One that she used before she slept, when she woke. Hell, she used the tick even when she sat still in general. It was the one thing that alerted him to the fact that she was regaining conciousness. Turning his head, he glanced at her and noted the flicker of her eye lids and quickly glanced back at Mikey.

"Forgive me Mikey, my _friend_ is waking." He said with a slight smile. Mikey grinned at him, happy that LH's friend was showing signs of healing.

"Okay-" Mikey said, knowing when to get lost and quickly said before leaving, "Tell her I said get better soon for me." Leatherhead blinked at the turtle's retreating form and gave a small chuckle before turning his large body back around, as Hanna slowly rolled over with a small pained look on her face and found herself face to snout with Leatherhead.

She blinked her eyes several times before green locked with golden yellow.

_"Leatherhead?"_

LH made a humming sound and placed several butterfly soft kisses along her lips, cheeks, and forehead. "Angel. How are you feeling?"

_"Better. Throat is still a bit sore but I think everything else is fine."_

"Well, that is something." LH said before placing a small pile of comics next to her head. She turned her head, curious to see what he had just placed there, giving him a chance to lean in and kiss the hollow of her throat causing her to shiver.

_"I should hope so-" _She said in a near breathless tone as she wiggled under him a little bit. _"I want to start on our family soon." _LH pulled back a little bit to look at her, his expression tender as he regarded her. Running his knuckles along the curve of her cheek as his chest ached.

"I want that too. But first you must get better-" Leatherhead said gently as he leaned down to kiss her again and noted that she pad picked up one of the He-Man comics and was staring at it. "Something wrong?" He asked as he pulled away and frowned when she giggled.

_"Whoever gave you this must really know girls..." _She said as she tipped the comic to the side and grinned as she glanced back and forth between him and the comic before saying, _"Hello loincloth."_

Unamused LH took the comic from her and tossed it over his shoulder with a soft growl as he buried his face against her throat and said in a sulky tone, "That's it. No comics for you." As Hanna giggled again and gripped his shoulders in her small hands while his tongue ran along her jugular, forcing a ragged moan from her throat.

Lips curving up at her reaction, LH gave her a half hug then pulled back again and picked up a comic. _"What are you doing?" _

"Reading to you-" Leatherhead said, his voice a low rumbling purr. "Just because I said you couldn't have any comics doesn't mean that I won't read to you... But don't expect to see any pictures of loinclothed men though."


	21. Chapter 21

Hello kittens- sorry it's taken so long to get to this chapter of Unexpected Surprises but I've been having health problems that have put me in danger of being hospitalized, and possibly even dying. And on top of that I'm having more seizures.

So- forgive me for the long break. It isn't like I meant to wait this long to write this chap.

And with further ado- here is Unexpected Surprises.

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It had been over two and a half weeks since Hanna had awoken and under Leatherheads careful and watchful eye she was up and moving around on her own again by the end of the first week in a half. Which was _wonderful_ since he hadn't been sure how much longer he could have watched over her without wanting to make love to her at least once.

Stupid as it was- It was simply how his species worked.

That even when injured, his kind couldn't help but seek to be physical with their mates. It was simply a part of their instincts to do so. To seek comfort and assure themselves that their mate was still there.

His feelings for Hanna were no different if the erection he was desperately trying to hide was any indication as he gently checked and probed each and every one of Hanna's injuries to make sure that they were completely healed. Running his large hands carefully along the slender callum of her throat, he noted that the bruising had faded to a dull yellow color, the ring that the cord had made around her neck when she had been hung- was all but gone.

Shifting his attention, he pushed the robe that she'd been wearing ever since her last bath, yesterday, and loosened the belt so that he could run his hands along her ribs to check the injuries there and nearly jumped out of his skin when the heel of his palm skimmed the underside of her right breast.

"Leatherhead?" Hanna said his name with a slight hitch to her voice as she squirmed on the cushions where she sat. Causing her robe to slip open a bit more, revealing soft smooth ivory skin. Leatherhead shuddered involuntarily, his body temp spiking as he lightly ran his hands along her ribs. Testing for any signs of discomfort when Hanna's hands came up and she gripped his jacket and ripped one sleeve half way down his arm before he could react.

"H-Hanna!" He sputtered as he stared down at her innocent looking face. "I'm trying to check your wounds!"

"You've checked me enough. I can think of other things that we can be doing..."

He sighed and stared down at her, his gaze unblinking as he took a moment to access the situation. It was rare of his mate to act so aggressively unless she felt threatened by something. He was about to reprimand her for tearing his jacket when he caught a whiff of the pheromones coming from her skin. They were much stronger than usual.

Leaning down a little bit, he put his snout right up against the side of her neck and inhaled deeply and bit back a groan. Oh god, no wonder she was acting more aggressively than usual- She was ovulating!

_Now would be a good time to mate-_ His mind whispered to him. After all, if he mated with her now her chances of conception were much higher. They could have their family... "I'm hot-" Hanna said in a peevish tone. And he was inclined to agree.

She was hot. Nay- she was _scortching _as she reached for his other sleeve only to have him grasp her wrist and still it's action. "Stop." He ordered, needing her to listen before his mind went into a frenzied state.

He was _not_ going to risk hurting her accidentally just to see to his own comfort.

Hanna looked up at him with an almost pleading look on her face and he narrowed his eyes as she said, "But it's uncomfortable being like this." Leaning down again so that they were eye to eye, he licked her lips then started to draw back so that he could tell her that it wouldn't be much longer for them. Which was a huge, **_huge_** mistake on his part since her small hand suddenly wrapped around his hardness and squeezed.

_"Ah!"_ He screamed, startled by her actions as she got a wicked looking smirk on her face and moved her hand a little.

"Well, well, what's this?" Hanna said in an almost gleeful tone as LH's spine went ram rod stiff for a moment before he swatted at her hands with his.

"It's something that you shouldn't be touching yet! Let go!"

"But you're hard."

"Hanna- No!"

"Just let me-"

"No means no! No means no!"

"Geez, you're acting like I'm going to rape you or something-"

"Statistically speaking that's an impossibility since we are already mates but-" Leatherhead stopped talking for a second when he saw the look on her face morph to one of pure sexy evil and gulped as she asked,

"Oh really?"

He nodded his head mutely as she pushed him back a little bit with one hand while maintaining her hold on his aching length with the other and grinned up at him, sending off alarm bells in his mind a moment before she pounced.

Literally. Sending the two of them tumbling back on the floor of Donatello's lab with her straddling LH's stomach.

LH looked up at her and flushed as a peculiar warmth settled in his chest and spread, sending pleasant tingles down his spine. Oh god he was losing the fight wasn't he? "Hanna are you really well enough for this?" He asked in a rough tone as he untied the belt to her robe and used his fingertips to slide the emerald silk from her slender shoulders so that he could see her better in the faint light.

All of her wounds were faded and almost gone. And her body was still one of the most beautiful bodies he had ever seen.

"I'm feeling pretty good. So I must be."

He made a snorting sound and muttered, "Either that or you are insane."

She swatted him on the shoulder with her free hand and he chuckled as he lifted his hands up to frame her face. Fuck it. He couldn't wait anymore. And neither could she. Licking her lips, he made a soft rumbling purring sound before murmmering, "We'll take it easy just in case."


End file.
